Advantages and Disadvantages of Electric Cars - Term Paper Example

Electric Cars s Submitted by s: Introduction An electric car is a vehicle that is propelled by a single or several electric motors, which use electrical energy that is stored in batteries, or any other form of storage where these motors provide instant torque for the cars that makes them accelerate smoothly and strongly. The very first cars that were powered electrically were developed in the 1880s and they became trendy in the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th century. Advancement in the technology that is associated with internal combustion engines as well as the mass production of vehicles that used gasoline that were cheaper led to the reduction in the preference for this technology. The energy crisis that was experienced in the 70s all through to the 80s developed a short-lived interest in electric cars even though the cars that existed at the time were not able to reach the mass marketing phase the same way that they did in the 21st century. From 2008, there has been a rebirth in the manufacturing of the electric cars that has been necessitated by the advancement that have been seen in the technology that is associated with battery and power management as well as the threats about the increase in the prices of oil. There is also the need to decrease the amount of greenhouse gases that are produced by the vehicles through the emissions. Various national as well as local governments have been able to come up with tax credits and other inducements that promote the embracing of the electric vehicles based on the size of the battery and the range that they can travel on the batteries. The advantages that are associated with the over the traditional internal combustion engine vehicles are such as a significant reduction in terms of the pollution of air, a huge reduction in the total greenhouse gases as well as less dependence on oil that comes from foreign countries. This is a source of concern is a variety of countries about the susceptibility to the unpredictability in oil prices as well as the disruptions in the supply. The full taking up of the electric cars is faced with a number of barriers, although the elevated costs that are associated with the electric vehicles, the deficiency of equipment to charge them and the worry about the range in terms of distance gives the consumers a cause of concern. Advantages of electric cars The electric vehicles use only electricity as the source of power, they are propelled by an electric motor that is powered by batteries that are rechargeable and they have various advantages over the vehicles that use internal combustion engines (Fardo and Patrick, 2009, p. 132). The electric vehicles use energy efficiently since they convert more than sixty percent of the electrical energy that is derived from the grid to provide power for the vehicle’s wheels while the vehicles that are powered by the gasoline convert a mere twenty percent of the energy that can be found in the gasoline to power the vehicles. The electric vehicles are also friendly to the environment since they do not have any emissions from their exhaust systems but the power plants that these vehicles derive their energy from which produce electricity have pollutants that are associated with them. The electricity that comes from nuclear, hydro power plants or the wind harvesting farms does not cause pollution to the environment since there are no emissions that are associated with them. The performance benefits that are linked to electric cars include the fact that the electric cars provide a quiet and smooth operation that is combined with a strong acceleration when compared to the internal combustion powered vehicles and thus they require less maintenance than they do (Westbrook, 2001, p. 152). This means that there is a considerable reduction in the dependence on energy since electricity is readily available and the cars can be charged at home. Electric cars make a contribution to air that is cleaner in the cities since there is no production of harmful gases from the engines that is associated with them such as soot, hydrocarbons as well as various oxides that are combined with nitrogen. The advantage of having clean air is typically on a local basis since based on the source of the energy that is utilized in charging the batteries, the pollutants to the air move to the places where the generation plants are located. The quantities of carbon dioxide that is produced is dependent on the emission intensity that is associated with the source of power that is utilized in charging the vehicle as well as the efficiency of the vehicle and the energy that might be wasted when the batteries are being charged. In terms of the mains electricity, the intensity of the emissions differs considerably per country and in a specific country, there will be a difference based on the demand, the accessibility of the renewable resources as well as the efficiency of the generation that comes from fossil fuels that are used at a particular time (Yamin, 2005, p. 335). When a vehicle is charged using renewable energy, the carbon footprint that is yielded is very low since it will be only the one that is required in the production and installation of the generation systems. Future advantages Eventually when there will be a connection to the smart grid in the future, the electric batteries will have the capability to be beneficial to both the consumer as well as the overall electrical grid. Through directing electricity back to the grid during the peak demand time, the electric vehicle will have the ability to keep the costs that are related with electricity lower by decreasing the need for the development of power sources to supplement the grid. The electric vehicle that is charged could also have the potential of acting as a generator in times of emergencies in the homes as well as business places during the periods that are characterized by outages. Used batteries are also a good source of energy that can be used by the community when they get depleted and cannot be used in the cars anymore; they still have some levels of usefulness that is left in them. When combined to be used together, the batteries can be utilized as uninterrupted power supplies for different functions in the cases where there is an outage. They can also be used as storage for renewable power that will in the end reduce that effects that are associated with winds that are intermittent. Disadvantages The main disadvantages that are associated with the electric vehicles lies in the batteries that they use to power the motors that make them move (Nee, Song and Ong, 2013, p. 350). The ranges that the vehicles can travel before they need to be charged again depend on the batteries and most of these vehicles can only travel for an average of 150 miles before having to be recharged as opposed to the gasoline vehicles that have a longer range. The time that is needed to recharge these vehicles and making sure that the battery packs are filled is between four to eight hours and this means that the person that is using the car might be inconvenienced while waiting for the car to charge (Geels, 2005, p. 164). It takes a considerably shorter time to fill a conventional car with gasoline since the process does not take more than five minutes. It is also important to note that the batteries that are used in the electric cars are expensive and need replacement after they have been used for a particular period. The same batteries are also bulky and therefore take up a significant amount of space in the car that would otherwise have been used as storage space for luggage. The installation of charging stations in the homes of the people who buy the electric vehicles is another major disadvantage that is associated with this particular type of cars. This though, is not necessary since they can be charged at different charging stations but most of the people who purchase them would want charging stations to be in their homes. This means that the idea that the electric vehicles have concerning the saving of costs cannot be achieved since setting up of these charging stations is another costly affair. Even though owning an electric vehicle means that a lot of costs that are linked to maintenance which include oil changes are eliminated, there is the possibility of incurring huge expenses that are associated with the batteries that are mounted on the cars. The mean life of the battery is expected to be about a decade and replacing the batteries that are depleted is an expensive affair that might cost thousands of dollars (Kirkland, 2007, p. 64). Summary Despite the admirable as well as positive characteristics that are associated with the electric cars, there is the general perception that everybody will be ready to abandon the internal combustion engines to settle for the electric cars that are environmentally friendly. This is not the case since there are a variety of negative attributes that are associated with the electric vehicles. Further improvements in technology are expected to address most of the disadvantages that are linked to these types of vehicles so that they can be able to appeal more to the consumers. With increase in the technology around these vehicles, the models of these vehicles will increase and therefore give the consumers as variety to choose from while making sure that they have standard features. Bibliography Fardo, S. and Patrick, D. 2009, Electrical power systems technology 1st ed, Fairmont Press, Lilburn, GA. Geels, F. 2005, Technological transitions and system innovations, 1st ed, Edward Elgar, Cheltenham, UK. Kirkland, K. 2007, Electricity and magnetism, 1st ed, Facts On File, New York, NY. Nee, A., Song, B. and Ong, S. 2013, Re-engineering manufacturing for sustainability, 1st ed, Springer, Singapore. Westbrook, M. 2001, The electric car, 1st ed, Institution of Electrical Engineers, London. Yamin, F. 2005, Climate change and carbon markets, 1st ed, Earthscan, London. Read More